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Jack Meredith
Jack Meredith was a resident of Seattle, Washington and a neighbor of the Black family. (MM: "Pilot") History Meeting Frank Black Jack Meredith first met Frank Black one morning in early 1996, when Frank was moving to Seattle. Frank was collecting a morning paper that was regularly delivered to his house when Jack greeted him, holding his own newspaper in his hand. Frank explained to his new neighbor that he and his wife, Catherine, were originally from Seattle but had been living in Washington, D.C. with their daughter, Jordan, for the past ten years. When Jack politely asked why Frank and his wife had returned to Seattle, he learned that Frank wanted to "come home and put some roots down". Jack admitted that Frank's answer made sense and asked him what he worked as. Under the impression that the Millennium Group was a consulting company, Frank replied that he did some consulting. Jack then asked if he and his own family could invite the Black family to visit them for dinner later in the week, noting that Frank was the father of a young girl. Frank thanked him for the invitation and told Jack that he would speak to his wife about visiting the Meredith family. As Frank turned and walked back toward his new home, Jack called to him and assured him that the neighborhood was one of the nicest areas in Seattle. He gave Frank a thumbs-up gesture before heading toward his own home. (MM: "Pilot") Catherine Black of his daughter's seizure.]] A short time later, Jack learned that Frank's wife, Catherine, was trying to contact her husband but couldn't. Jack went to Frank's house in the night to leave him a note but met him while running there in the pouring rain. He told Frank what had been happening and informed him that his daughter had had some kind of seizure. (MM: "Pilot") When Jack visited the Black family house again, Frank was putting in a security light using a tall ladder. He explained to Jack that he was adding the light because the days were going to start getting shorter and it would be nice for Catherine Black if she came home from work late. At this, Jack realized that Catherine had been offered a job that he knew she wanted. He thought the news was "terrific" but asked what she did. As Frank was finished with his modifications to the house, he started to climb down the ladder but paused to tell Jack that Catherine was a clinical social worker. When Jack asked Frank if he had all the tools he required, Frank stepped down from the ladder and answered, "Yeah, I think I'm all squared away". At that moment, Catherine came out of the house and told Frank that he had a phone call. Catherine said hello to Jack, who returned the greeting. Suspicions Over Frank Black's Work Over the next few days, Jack noticed that Frank was gone. When they met again, Jack curiously asked if Frank had been working while he was away. Frank, who had just been making some final preparations to the security lights, confirmed Jack's theory. Jack then asked if Frank had been working with the consultant group he had mentioned earlier and Frank answered positively. Although Jack admitted that he was unsure of what consulting involved, Frank explained that the group tried to solve problems they were given. When Jack asked if he had solved the latest problem, Frank revealed that he couldn't even make sense of it. (MM: "Gehenna") Jordan, Frank's daughter, later stayed with the Meredith family for a night. (MM: "The Well-Worn Lock") Another night, a man knocked on Jack's door, left an envelope and then immediately departed. As the envelope had Frank's name on it, Jack suspected that the man had delivered it to the wrong house by mistake. A few minutes later, Jack took the envelope to the Black family's house in the belief that the item must be important. He saw that Frank and Catherine were awake but was afraid that he might wake Frank's young daughter by ringing their doorbell. He therefore chose to knock on the living room window, where Frank and Catherine were talking, and attract their attention. However, the loud noise of his knock startled Frank and Catherine and they jumped. When they turned to the window to see Jack, he waved at them and smiled. After Frank opened the door, Jack awkwardly apologised for possibly disturbing them. He subsequently explained what had happened and handed the envelope to Frank, explaining that he hadn't seen the man who had delivered it. Frank thanked him for bringing him the item and closed the door as Jack wished both Frank and Catherine a good night. (MM: "Weeds") After Frank's brother, Tom, left his baby son in Frank and Catherine's care, Catherine took the young boy to the Merediths' and asked them to look after the young boy as she had to take Jordan to a doctor and Frank was busy at work. (MM: "Sacrament") On a sunny Sunday morning, Jack was preparing breakfast as he watched the morning news on a small television set on a counter. A reporter referred to the case of former Sheriff William Garry in Ogden County, Utah. Garry was convicted of murdering his wife and children and the reporter announced that the prosecution in the case was expected to demand the death penalty. As Jack listened to the news, he learned that the prosecution was bringing in an FBI agent to provide the jury with a psychological profile of William Gary. Meanwhile, Jack watched Frank open the rear door of his red Jeep Cherokee, parked in a driveway outside Jack's window. Frank tossed a bag into the vehicle, shut the door, then headed for the driver's seat. (MM: "Covenant") Background Information In a commentary track on the Millennium Season 1 DVD, writer and Millennium creator, Chris Carter, reveals, "Jack Meredith was my neighbor, growing up, my across-the-street neighbor. He was like this fellow. He was as nice as could be." Laughing about a perception amongst some viewers that the character was nosy, Chris Carter adds, "I don't know why people took this guy as being sort of a nosy busybody but I just saw him as the quintessential, caring, super-nice neighbor." In the original script of "Covenant", Jack Meredith has a bigger part than in the final episode. After noticing Frank Black load his car, Jack runs outside and greets him. Frank throws his garment bag in the car before Jack asks, "Going down to Ogden, I bet... ?" Frank nods politely and Jack smiles, his hunch confirmed. Frank slams the trunk of his car shut, but Jack doesn't take the hint and makes no move to leave. He rhetorically asks, "Slaughter your wife and children, what's there to say about a man like that?" He pauses before asking, "What do they do down there? Gas chamber? Electric chair?" Opening the driver's door, Frank tells Jack that there's a choice between lethal injection or death by firing squad. An awkward pause follows and Jack finally takes the hint. With no more to say, he wishes Frank, "God speed". Jack walks away, not feeling even a little bit awkward by his strange send-off. Frank studies his neighbor for a moment, before entering his car. Don MacKay appeared as Jack Meredith in the character's filmed appearances. Appearances *MM: **"Pilot" (Season 1) **"Gehenna" **"Weeds" **"Covenant" Category:MM characters